New Eats: Giardino

For 40 years Umberto Menghi’s Il Giardino restaurant was synonymous with Vancouver fine dining. Now, not a stone’s throw from the quintessentially Tuscan-style sunflower-yellow abode that made his name, Menghi’s unveiled his new venture, called simply, Giardino.

Decor is country-ornate, with high ceilings and plenty of storage space for wine and sundries (Menghi’s inspiration came from airy Italian granaries, accounting in part for the spot’s impressive 240-person capacity, which includes a garden-y patio). Though the restaurant is new, it boasts a cosy ambiance, perhaps thanks to the familiar presence of veteran staff from Il Giardino. The menu sees the addition of a crudo bar, from which diners may order wisp-thin tuna carpaccio with sesame seeds and Granny Smith apple sorbet, or classic antipasti and a glass of wine. Have a serious appetite? Tuck into a 36-oz Porterhouse Fiorentina: a caveman portion for sophisticate tastes. Or, perhaps, Spaghetti Al Nero di Seppia, black with squid ink, tossed with burst cherry tomatoes and succulent chunks of lobster meat.

No matter what you order, it will be exquisite and true to its Italian roots. —Adrienne Matei

Giardino, 1328 Hornby St., Vancouver, 604-669-2422, www.umberto.com/giardino

Photo by Luis Valdizon.